Beginners Guide To Cryptocurrency

As the popularity of digital currencies grows, many people are beginning to consider investing in the market. For this reason, it is important to understand the available options and the viability of investing in the coins.

The wide variety of cryptocurrencies available on the market include Litecoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin, Ripple and more. According to the Cryptocurrency Institute none of these cryptocurrencies have a suggested purchase price, but rather projections for how far they could ultimately go.

Bitcoin (BTC)

Despite the separation of Bitcoin into two: Bitcoin Core and Bitcoin Classic, it is still the dominant cryptocurrency with the greatest future potential.Analysts from major banks, such as Goldman Sachs place Bitcoin at a very high value in 2018. Some more daring ones see Bitcoin at $50,000 in a not too distant period.

Some projections are that by end of 2017, Bitcoin will challenge the $30,000 mark and may exceed $ 40,000 at the beginning of 2018.

Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum is one of the most punished cryptocurrencies since it once suffered a 50 percent drop during the course of 2017. The currency has a high potential thanks to its smart contract technology. It has a future in many fields of application.

Many analysts see potential in Ethereum and that it will end the year (2017) between $850 and $900. In addition, forecasts place its value at the end of 2018 at above $2,000.

Ripple (XRP)

Ripple is another cryptocurrency that trades at a bargain price with great possibilities of rising in the short and medium term. However, one of the factors that play against Ripple is that there will be token injections every month for several years. This is expected to continue until the cryptocurrency reaches a total of 99,000 million in circulation.

At the time of writing this post, Ripple is trading at $0.7250 with its most optimistic medium and long-term projection standing at $0.9550.

Litecoin (LTC)

Litecoin’s price surged 10,000 percent in the past 2017 and it is expected to gain throughout 2018. The currency managed to reach $1 billion market capitalization in November 2013 and continued to expand in 2017.

AntShares

AntShares is a Chinese cryptocurrency that allows smart contracts to run and it is known as the “Chinese Ethereum”. AntShares marked its historical maximum at $11.80 before retreating to just over $5. If the currency receives full support from Chinese investors, it can be worth as much as an Ethereum.

How Cryptocurrency Mining Works

The computational process behind cryptocurrency mining has become big business. Yet, investing in cryptocurrency requires nerves of steel and constant attention. Miners should be prepared to enter a market characterized by volatility, which is served in extra large portions. In 2017, traders have watched as the universe of digital currencies launched on traditional futures markets, including Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).

With a capitalization that has shot up dramatically since January 2017, many are beginning to take notice of the digital currency market. Bitcoin is leading the way with a phenomenal surge in value.

In spite of the record volumes, the majority of competing currencies like Ripple and Litecoin are still small and immature. Many currencies are still trying to find real uses, so their buying and selling is fundamentally speculative. But there is an alternative to investment to getting a ‘wallet’ of digital assets. Individuals can embark in digital currency mining.

The Mining Process

Mining is the process by which an individual is incorporated into a network, which is controlled by blockchain technology. All miners are expected to provide computational power. Through a process of solving complex mathematical problems, they help validate the transactions that are made in the P2P network.

The cryptocurrency platforms are supported by millions of decentralized computers. Participants are rewarded in the form of tokens. Whether they are Bitcoins, Ethers or Litecoin depends on the network.

The greater the power of a mining computer, the greater the probabilities that the owner will earn some tokens. A single Bitcoin is worth more than $10,000 as of December 2017.

Computing Requirements

The cryptocurrency market introduced a new role for computers — Bitcoin mining. Computers are used for many different tasks, but the last thing one could think about a few years ago is using the devices for mining. In effect, cryptographic currencies, such as Bitcoin are generated using specially designed algorithms. To manage transactions, the networks need substantial computational processing power.

Putting your computer to create new blocks and approve transactions is known as cryptocurrency mining. If you find one, you’ll keep a token for yourself.

You must have a computer system with sufficient capacity to process a large number of operations per second. The first computer that finds the correct solution to the problem will take the prize. The objective is to verify the validity of transactions in a blockchain network. Mining can be likened to the process in which the miners dig to obtain a gold nugget.

The better the tools, the more likely that a miner will find the mineral. In this case, the answer lies in solving mathematical problems posed. Once that problem has been solved, the process continues to infinity as other transactions are released.

There is a fundamental step for cryptocurrency to be stored in a computer. Before starting to mine, you need a digital wallet that allows you to deposit every virtual currency that you earn. The most common one for computers is Electrum, but the choice of program will depend mainly on the operating system.

Blockchain Technology

Transactions are grouped in blocks that require complex mathematical calculations. Miners use powerful computers to handle the calculation and verify the validity of transactions. The mining activities are rewarded with Bitcoin, but the ability to earn has become resource intensive and costly for ordinary users.

Every 10 minutes a new block is generated with a new bitcoin that can be earned by the miners who participated in the creation of the block. In effect, the market grows as new Bitcoins are generated. However, there can only be a maximum of 21 million Bitcoins, but it will take years to reach that figure.

A transaction must be processed within a block and that operation is approved by other miners and users in the network. A transaction is considered valid only when the majority of users consider it legitimate.